I'll have to admit that I tried reading Dee Brown's "Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee" on two separate occasions, the last time quite recently, and I found it to be VERY dry. Perhaps that was only in the early going, but I wasn't able to complete it both times. As for the film, I came across it quite by accident at my local library, not being an HBO subscriber. If I had my druthers, I guess I'd side with those reviewers who feel a more complete story could have been told using a mini-series format. However given the medium, it's a compelling film that highlights the plight of the Native American Indian in the dying days of the Old West, and with it, the death knell of a proud warrior people.
I recently visited the James Fenimore Cooper Museum in Cooperstown, New York, and at the time, actual Sioux drawings were on exhibit depicting the Battle at Little Big Horn. Watching the aerial view of the attack on screen suddenly put into perspective the circular rendition of an artist's rendering on a full size tee-pee. It was like seeing a painting come to life with a soaring eagle's eye, perhaps devoid of detail, but breathtaking in it's panoramic perspective on the immensity of the battle. Not to mention the hopelessness of Custer's cause.
The film can be absolutely depressing at times with it's depiction of outright slaughter, and perhaps even more so once the Sioux tribes are relegated to reservation life. We get to see how the 'Every Man a Chief' designation, though sounding completely egalitarian, works to strip away a proud chief's identity and status within his nation. I'm actually glad that the film didn't explore Sitting Bull's Wild West Show days with Buffalo Bill. Fortunately, he was able to reaffirm his own dignity with the 'one last time' confrontation against Senator Dawes (Aidan Quinn), a legacy that remains standing to this day.
Nice performances all around by Aidan Quinn as Senator Dawes, Adam Beach as the conflicted Ohiyesa/Charles Eastman, and August Schellenberg as Sitting Bull. President Grant came and went too quickly for me to recognize Fred Thompson under the beard, a trait he might also suffer as a Presidential contender unless he gets that fire in the belly.
I recently visited the James Fenimore Cooper Museum in Cooperstown, New York, and at the time, actual Sioux drawings were on exhibit depicting the Battle at Little Big Horn. Watching the aerial view of the attack on screen suddenly put into perspective the circular rendition of an artist's rendering on a full size tee-pee. It was like seeing a painting come to life with a soaring eagle's eye, perhaps devoid of detail, but breathtaking in it's panoramic perspective on the immensity of the battle. Not to mention the hopelessness of Custer's cause.
The film can be absolutely depressing at times with it's depiction of outright slaughter, and perhaps even more so once the Sioux tribes are relegated to reservation life. We get to see how the 'Every Man a Chief' designation, though sounding completely egalitarian, works to strip away a proud chief's identity and status within his nation. I'm actually glad that the film didn't explore Sitting Bull's Wild West Show days with Buffalo Bill. Fortunately, he was able to reaffirm his own dignity with the 'one last time' confrontation against Senator Dawes (Aidan Quinn), a legacy that remains standing to this day.
Nice performances all around by Aidan Quinn as Senator Dawes, Adam Beach as the conflicted Ohiyesa/Charles Eastman, and August Schellenberg as Sitting Bull. President Grant came and went too quickly for me to recognize Fred Thompson under the beard, a trait he might also suffer as a Presidential contender unless he gets that fire in the belly.